Wolves 1 Middlesbrough 0 - Verdict thread

[Freddeno]

At the moment? He's not just come back from a long lay off, looks fit and he's causing defenders trouble, he just lacks a couple of things. Nothing that can't be taught to him, which I'm sure Nuno and the coaching staff will be.
Same goes with you mate, we all want the best for the club.

fit yes..compared to graham, zyro and costa... yeah UTW

 

[jlo]

Ok here's my summary from being at the game.

7 debuts. Just let that sink in for a moment. Against the arguably favourites in the league who were well and truly neutralised by us. They couldn't find a way through, defensively we were solid, but with lessons to learn. With Cav and Costa to come... Quite a defensive formation, lots of possession and not always a threat but it's clear it will frustrate the hell out of the opposition (except just after preseason when Boro seemed happy to not try to win it back all that often). Suspect in other games we'll be more attacking. What was clear was this was a team game, not about any one individual even - or it will be by the time Nuno has got them all on page.

Ruddy: A couple of very important saves made, and collected most things that came his way. I missed whatever it was he flapped at, so on that basis he gets a solid [editted: well he did also save us two points from whatever happened in front of him, call it a 7.7]
Boly: How solid is he? Very little is going to get by him all season, he was the calmest/best of the three CBs and impressed me immensely. Very calm and collected, a first touch that doesn't have you worried (unlike Danny Batth). 7.8
Coady: Did what he needed to do, seemed like a captain and organised well for the first half. I saw less of that in the second half, and was reliable on the ball. I suspect he won't be first choice all season. I'd love to see Hause in this back three in due course, but once Miranda has fully settled in to Championship football. Coady gets a solid 7.2 and he deserves his play in this team.
Miranda: Well, he's clearly a defender and a half. Between the back three, Boro had nothing to offer due to how comfortably he and Boly were able to pick the ball off the attacking player. However Miranda needs to learn English football is a bit different to elsewhere he has played, and he looks like he will. A few poor passes as he tried to build an attack out of the back three through the centre or Douglas (cross field balls) which ultimately let Boro try to build another attack. He's going to be the business though, I don't think many opposition strikers are going to fancy facing him. A 7.4 which could've been higher if he hadn't let Boro in a few times.
Doherty: A lot of our attack came down the right hand side and Doherty played his part in making that happen, or making sure he was an option. All of the midfield 4 worked well together and worked for each other. He's deserving of a place in this team, miles ahead of where he was last year. He had a couple of changes to put in decent crosses, and it's obvious you can't expect him to do this well. I still have reservations about the formation and it's because of the wing backs, but it might just be me having to get used to seeing more play come through the centre. 7.5
Neves: He's so good. I see a lot of praise for Saiss but we're forgetting just who was the linchpin to this side. Outrageous ability and passing, and worked really well with, well, everyone. Although we didn't create a lot of attacks today, when we did it came from the centre mostly. There was one particular pass in the second half and got a massive round of applause all by itself. I heard a "wow" or two from those around me. He gets an 8.1, and my MotM.
Saiss: Much better than last season, clearly needs to play further up the field and with better players. Him and Neves formed a great understanding and I expect he'll become the regular fodder alongside Ruben. I can't think of anything he did wrong, but he's didn't stand out quite as much so gets a solid 7.7.
Douglas: I'm not convinced, sorry. Got caught under the ball quite a few times and possession was mostly lost on the left hand side. Jota didn't help out much defensively. His crossing is much better than Doherty's, obviously, but I think he's still working himself up to this level of football. The potential might be there, I'm not sure yet, but today he didn't do much wrong. Him and Jota were the furthest away from me in the first half, so I don't think I'm giving him a fair assessment based on the first half either. Boro were better defensively on their right hand side which I think made him stand out a bit less. Will be interested to see what more is to come from him. 7.3
Enobakhare: This is clearly a talent, but a raw one at that. I'm not sure he'll make it beyond a team fighting for relegation in the Premier League, but that's still more than good enough for where we are now. He seemed to be the focus of most of our attacks, but lacks the decision making and had a few careless passes which gave Boro the chance to build. Out of him and Jota, he was more the threat today. Probably will grab us 5-10 goals his season, depending on how often he plays once Costa and Cav are back. He's a good option to have, and deserves a 7.6 today.
Jota: Talented, but lacked the fight today. Perhaps it's because we were too defensive, but when Jordan came on at least you saw a player willing to try and win the ball back. Against worse teams, I suspect Jota will be the star - a possession player, which suits our style of play. Like Douglas, I couldn't see much of their side in the first half, so perhaps he'd just tired himself out early, and a fair bit of the attack in the first half was on that left hand side, so I suspect he was central to that. But in the second half he was the closest player to me and I was disappointed by the way he stood around, often hands on hip, waiting for it to come to him, rather than trying to get too much involved when it was near-ish him. When Dicko did hold up the ball, he didn't seem to try and get into the centre much. Edwards came on because Nuno could see he was left out the game, so he wanted to push Jota into a front two, but that didn't make much difference. The potential is there, but today he gets a 6.9
Bonatini: Wolves were too defensive at times today for him to get too involved, but very calmly took the goal which was presented to him. He still had a little to do, but he did it well. I don't know if he is the killer striker we are after, Dicko was more involved once he came on, but I suspect he'll be around the team to finish quite a few chances off with little difficultly. I think he needs a few hard training sessions too, to make up for missing our pre-season, but also playing in a less competitive league. 7.9

Dicko: He's not the messiah, but he was much sharper than I've seen for a while when he did come on. We still need a 20 goal a season striker, but Dicko seemed to get involved and hold the ball up well, but often lacked options around him, which I suspect won't happen so much in future games with Cav and Costa back. Did well, a good sub option for the season. 7.4
Edwards: I said during half time, Edwards might be useful in this front 3 today, but only because you don't want him in the midfield two, and he can run around whilst Cav and Costa are missing, so today's game was appropriate for his running around trick. Did nothing of note when he did come on however, so can't really rate him much above a 6.9. I doubt Nuno will call on him much, it was only an option today to bring Jota into the game but that didn't really work.
Graham: Had less than 10 minutes I think, but he made an notable impact and got involved. We didn't create much generally today, but him and Dicko did at least turn us into a bit more of an attacking side when they were on the pitch. 10 minutes longer and he might've done more of note. Solid 7.

 

[SLB]

maybe not scoring..

Well that and his pace seemed like a waste on the middle. But his finishing was really poor at that age.

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

Just got home.

We were fucking brilliant.

Sorry Fred

 

[Freddeno]

im not sorry we won, i just want us to be just that, brilliant

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

And we genuinely were.

 

[Freddeno]

ok

 

[Tony Towner]

Ok here's my summary from being at the game.

7 debuts. Just let that sink in for a moment. Against the arguably favourites in the league who were well and truly neutralised by us. They couldn't find a way through, defensively we were solid, but with lessons to learn. With Cav and Costa to come... Quite a defensive formation, lots of possession and not always a threat but it's clear it will frustrate the hell out of the opposition (except just after preseason when Boro seemed happy to not try to win it back all that often). Suspect in other games we'll be more attacking. What was clear was this was a team game, not about any one individual even - or it will be by the time Nuno has got them all on page.

Ruddy: A couple of very important saves made, and collected most things that came his way. I missed whatever it was he flapped at, so on that basis he gets a solid [editted: well he did also save us two points from whatever happened in front of him, call it a 7.7]
Boly: How solid is he? Very little is going to get by him all season, he was the calmest/best of the three CBs and impressed me immensely. Very calm and collected, a first touch that doesn't have you worried (unlike Danny Batth). 7.8
Coady: Did what he needed to do, seemed like a captain and organised well for the first half. I saw less of that in the second half, and was reliable on the ball. I suspect he won't be first choice all season. I'd love to see Hause in this back three in due course, but once Miranda has fully settled in to Championship football. Coady gets a solid 7.2 and he deserves his play in this team.
Miranda: Well, he's clearly a defender and a half. Between the back three, Boro had nothing to offer due to how comfortably he and Boly were able to pick the ball off the attacking player. However Miranda needs to learn English football is a bit different to elsewhere he has played, and he looks like he will. A few poor passes as he tried to build an attack out of the back three through the centre or Douglas (cross field balls) which ultimately let Boro try to build another attack. He's going to be the business though, I don't think many opposition strikers are going to fancy facing him. A 7.4 which could've been higher if he hadn't let Boro in a few times.
Doherty: A lot of our attack came down the right hand side and Doherty played his part in making that happen, or making sure he was an option. All of the midfield 4 worked well together and worked for each other. He's deserving of a place in this team, miles ahead of where he was last year. He had a couple of changes to put in decent crosses, and it's obvious you can't expect him to do this well. I still have reservations about the formation and it's because of the wing backs, but it might just be me having to get used to seeing more play come through the centre. 7.5
Neves: He's so good. I see a lot of praise for Saiss but we're forgetting just who was the linchpin to this side. Outrageous ability and passing, and worked really well with, well, everyone. Although we didn't create a lot of attacks today, when we did it came from the centre mostly. There was one particular pass in the second half and got a massive round of applause all by itself. I heard a "wow" or two from those around me. He gets an 8.1, and my MotM.
Saiss: Much better than last season, clearly needs to play further up the field and with better players. Him and Neves formed a great understanding and I expect he'll become the regular fodder alongside Ruben. I can't think of anything he did wrong, but he's didn't stand out quite as much so gets a solid 7.7.
Douglas: I'm not convinced, sorry. Got caught under the ball quite a few times and possession was mostly lost on the left hand side. Jota didn't help out much defensively. His crossing is much better than Doherty's, obviously, but I think he's still working himself up to this level of football. The potential might be there, I'm not sure yet, but today he didn't do much wrong. Him and Jota were the furthest away from me in the first half, so I don't think I'm giving him a fair assessment based on the first half either. Boro were better defensively on their right hand side which I think made him stand out a bit less. Will be interested to see what more is to come from him. 7.3
Enobakhare: This is clearly a talent, but a raw one at that. I'm not sure he'll make it beyond a team fighting for relegation in the Premier League, but that's still more than good enough for where we are now. He seemed to be the focus of most of our attacks, but lacks the decision making and had a few careless passes which gave Boro the chance to build. Out of him and Jota, he was more the threat today. Probably will grab us 5-10 goals his season, depending on how often he plays once Costa and Cav are back. He's a good option to have, and deserves a 7.6 today.
Jota: Talented, but lacked the fight today. Perhaps it's because we were too defensive, but when Jordan came on at least you saw a player willing to try and win the ball back. Against worse teams, I suspect Jota will be the star - a possession player, which suits our style of play. Like Douglas, I couldn't see much of their side in the first half, so perhaps he'd just tired himself out early, and a fair bit of the attack in the first half was on that left hand side, so I suspect he was central to that. But in the second half he was the closest player to me and I was disappointed by the way he stood around, often hands on hip, waiting for it to come to him, rather than trying to get too much involved when it was near-ish him. When Dicko did hold up the ball, he didn't seem to try and get into the centre much. Edwards came on because Nuno could see he was left out the game, so he wanted to push Jota into a front two, but that didn't make much difference. The potential is there, but today he gets a 6.9
Bonatini: Wolves were too defensive at times today for him to get too involved, but very calmly took the goal which was presented to him. He still had a little to do, but he did it well. I don't know if he is the killer striker we are after, Dicko was more involved once he came on, but I suspect he'll be around the team to finish quite a few chances off with little difficultly. I think he needs a few hard training sessions too, to make up for missing our pre-season, but also playing in a less competitive league. 7.9

Dicko: He's not the messiah, but he was much sharper than I've seen for a while when he did come on. We still need a 20 goal a season striker, but Dicko seemed to get involved and hold the ball up well, but often lacked options around him, which I suspect won't happen so much in future games with Cav and Costa back. Did well, a good sub option for the season. 7.4
Edwards: I said during half time, Edwards might be useful in this front 3 today, but only because you don't want him in the midfield two, and he can run around whilst Cav and Costa are missing, so today's game was appropriate for his running around trick. Did nothing of note when he did come on however, so can't really rate him much above a 6.9. I doubt Nuno will call on him much, it was only an option today to bring Jota into the game but that didn't really work.
Graham: Had less than 10 minutes I think, but he made an notable impact and got involved. We didn't create much generally today, but him and Dicko did at least turn us into a bit more of an attacking side when they were on the pitch. 10 minutes longer and he might've done more of note. Solid 7.

Your reviews of Jota and Douglas are way off, particularly your point about Jota not getting stuck in, for me that was his most impressive quality today

 

[SLB]

Anywhere i can watch full match? Would like to make a tactical analysis on it.

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

Jota was superb, and got stuck in big time

THAT PASS from Neves? Holy cow, Insane

 

[Tredman]

I wasn’t massively impressed with Jota, but he did definitely get stuck in - he was heavily marked, which gave Bright more room to impress on the other side.

Douglas was really good, best left back performance I’ve seen at wolves in a very long time.

 

[Freddeno]

yes, admire Jotas fighting spirit, didnt get a lot done on the creative side but worked very hard....Neves is quality

 

[Freddeno]

Jota will deliver though when getting more time

 

[b3h]

"That one pass" from Neves. To Doherty. Looked like it defied physics. Not sure if you'll know which I mean as he was pinging it all over.

Miranda shaky 1st half, but we know he's quality. Bright doesn't get his head up enough and is a bit slow thinking, and picks the wrong option a lot. Boly not quite as good with his feet as the other 2 CBs but looks like he could be a rock for us. Barry has a sexy little cross in his locker doesn't he... Should definitely have players getting on the end of that more. Jota not a great debut but not bad. Everyone else pretty good.

Really glad Leo got his debut goal too

 

[Alan]

Anywhere i can watch full match? Would like to make a tactical analysis on it.

Go to Wolves website and sign up for WolvesTV. Pretty sure replays are included in the package.

 

[jlo]

Your reviews of Jota and Douglas are way off, particularly your point about Jota not getting stuck in, for me that was his most impressive quality today

Fair enough, I'm judging mostly on them in the second half, and Jota definitely stood around not getting involved at quite a few times. Maybe I expected too much, but others have noted he was quiet. I did not see Jota track back with intent (yes he dropped back, but offered little today). The potential was there, he just struck me as a possession player who will let others win the ball back for him. Would've liked to see him get a bit closer to the action that's all. I need to see more of Douglas too. Both promising starts, and especially if we remember this was the favourites for the title we played today. Am sure they will come good, they just weren't my stand out players today.

Edit: oh and I didn't see much of last season, but I'm 99% sure Douglas was better than any LB option we had last year. I'm judging harshly here.

 

[James]

Had an absolutely horrid day dealing with Lytham festival but reading this thread has made it a hell of a lot better.

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

Jota was fucking quality all day, I never saw this "standing around" bollocks. I recommend specsavers.

 

[Freddeno]

really like Douglas..solid LB and good going forward with some great crosses but he will have competition(which is just good)

 

[The Bear]

Yes very impressed with his work-rate too.